Developer selling Trafalgar Eight high-rise project for US$9m

Land and plans for the construction of a high-rise building dubbed Trafalgar Eight in Kingston's commercial district are up for sale at some US$9 million ($1 billion), according to realtors Coldwell Banker Jamaica.

The plan involves the construction of a nine-storey commercial office building adjacent to New Kingston with four levels of parking, two of which are underground.

"Possibly the last available parcel of land on Trafalgar Road, this is the opportunity to purchase the land and full building approval documents to make this a reality," stated the press notice on Friday that listed the price tag.

Realtor Janet Thompson of Coldwell Banker indicated that the unnamed developer wanted to exit the project, but not for financial reasons. She said that the project already received approval of architectural and engineering blueprints along with building permits. Wednesday Business awaits additional written responses to queries from the developer, facilitated through Thompson.

CONTEMPORARYBUILDING

Trafalgar Eight is described as a contemporary building, with a potential gross area of 98,480 square feet with a net rentable area of 87,727 sq ft and 286 parking spaces. The building would be set in a landscaped garden, with scenic elevator entry and what the notice called a water feature.

Trafalgar Road runs perpendicular to the New Kingston business centre of Knutsford Boulevard. The last building boom in that area occurred in the 1990s when banks and insurance companies constructed high-rise head offices. The financial sector meltdown later in that decade brought a halt to high-rise construction in that area.

Now, call centre operations are competing with financial institutions for building space in the business district. The Khemlani Group, for example, is offering its former warehouse on Belmont Road, which runs perpendicular to the top end of Trafalgar Road, for rental to either call centres or banks.